Photo: Volkswagen
The 2021 Volkswagen New Auto event had multiple technical issues with the sound and lived broadcasting. However, one of the most intriguing relates to geography. Herbert Diess said in a tweet that Volkswagen is concentrating on Europe, China, and the U.S. because “that’s where the car is being reinvented first.” Yet, his live presentation had a map of the U.S., including Mexico and Central America as part of the American market, and we have no idea why – just a few guesses.
Before anything else, it is essential to notice that the only map with that peculiarity is the one referring to the U.S. When Volkswagen wanted to represent China, it showed that country in the image. The only controversial bit about it is that Taiwan appeared as part of China. Volkswagen’s map for Europe seems to be spot on.
Admitting that it was not a mistake, few hypotheses can explain it. The map could be a way to represent how Volkswagen organizes the North American market. However, that interpretation does not stand because such a map should have included Canada. After all, Donald Trump may have changed NAFTA, but USMCA is still in full force.
If it’s not the North American market, another possibility for the map to include Mexico and Central America would be that Volkswagen has factories in Mexico and the U.S., which sell their vehicles to all those countries presented on the map. The problem with that possibility is that such representation would have to include some South American countries to be correct.
What also comes to mind is that the open borders policy of the Joe Biden government made Volkswagen consider all countries sending migrants to the U.S. as part of that market. Nonetheless, if that were the case, we would see a much larger “U.S.” on Volkswagen’s maps. At this point, the idea of a mistake may be the most suitable one. We’ll ask the German carmaker about what it intended to show with its unusual cartography.
Admitting that it was not a mistake, few hypotheses can explain it. The map could be a way to represent how Volkswagen organizes the North American market. However, that interpretation does not stand because such a map should have included Canada. After all, Donald Trump may have changed NAFTA, but USMCA is still in full force.
If it’s not the North American market, another possibility for the map to include Mexico and Central America would be that Volkswagen has factories in Mexico and the U.S., which sell their vehicles to all those countries presented on the map. The problem with that possibility is that such representation would have to include some South American countries to be correct.
.@VWGroup is upgrading for this time and positioning itself to future-proof individual mobility: mobility for generations to come. We are focusing on the three major global markets: the #USA, #China and #Europe. That's where the car is being reinvented first.
— Herbert Diess (@Herbert_Diess) July 13, 2021
What also comes to mind is that the open borders policy of the Joe Biden government made Volkswagen consider all countries sending migrants to the U.S. as part of that market. Nonetheless, if that were the case, we would see a much larger “U.S.” on Volkswagen’s maps. At this point, the idea of a mistake may be the most suitable one. We’ll ask the German carmaker about what it intended to show with its unusual cartography.
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